Solvents for fingernail polishes have been known for many years. The most classical solvents are based on an organic solvent which has a good dissolving power for the fingernail polishes and which is sufficiently volatile such as acetone or ethyl acetate. However, for the reasons of protection of the individuals, protection of the environment and most significant for the purpose of avoiding the danger of inflammation, air pollution and the risks of intoxication due to the vapors, it is desirable to decrease the quantity of these solvents in the nail polish removers.
In addition, these known solvents being applied on the fingernails are not free of toxic action to the organism. Actually they have substantial delipidating action and a dehydrating action of the nails. Some of these solvents as acetone penetrate into the organism through the skin and are known to be toxic to the liver. Several compositions which dissolve fingernail polishes have been proposed to decrease these drawbacks, but none of them offers all the properties which are desirable for solvents of fingernail polishes. Indeed compositions being used as solvents must offer simultaneously a good solvent power for the fingernail polishes, a good speed of evaporation, a very good harmlessness with respect to the constituents of the nails and the skin and must be free of toxicity by contact or inhalation.
A solvent made up of three phases has been described in Japanese Patent application JP 1-160908. It is constituted by an upper phase which is oily, a lower phase based on water and acetone and an intermediate phase based on propylene carbonate mixed with a hydrocarbon solvent and also with acetone. On one hand the presence of an oily substance in the upper phase allows to prevent the solvent from evaporating, but on the other hand this composition has the drawback of containing propylene carbonate, a solvent which is not sufficiently volatile. Due to this fact, the composition remains on the fingers for too long a period of time and the risks of damaging surfaces of plastic materials or paintings with which they would come into contact are increased.
This composition of the prior art contains also hydrocarbon solvents such as toluene or xylene which are considered very dangerous. In addition to these solvents, acetone, the drawbacks of which are known, is indispensable and is present in a substantial amount.
There is, therefore, a need of a composition to dissolve the fingernail polishes which is free of the drawbacks of the compositions of the prior art.